Nursing Foundations

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering the foundations of nursing, including nursing theories, ethics, professionalism, safety standards, leadership styles, and communication protocols.

Holistic Nursing Care

The provision of care for the whole person, encompassing their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health.

Patient-Centered Care

Individualized care where nurses provide direct care or advocate and arrange for appropriate care to fulfill a client's specific needs and concerns.

General systems theory

A theory for universal application that involves breaking whole things into parts to see how they work together in systems.

Adaptation theory

The adjustment of living matter to other living things and the environment.

Developmental theory

Ordered and predictable growth and development from conception to death.

Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)

The process of collecting, processing, and implementing research findings and the best available evidence to improve clinical practice, the work environment, or patient outcomes.

Culture

The integration of human behaviors including communication, language, actions, beliefs, values, customs, and institutions of racial, religious, social, and ethnic groups.

Subculture

A group of people who are members of a larger cultural group but possess certain ethnic, occupational, or physical characteristics not common to the larger culture.

Cultural Awareness

The ability and willingness to investigate and understand differences between perceptions, beliefs, traditions, and values within one's own culture as well as cultures different from their own.

Cultural Competence

Appreciating, accepting, and respecting all individuals’ cultural influences, beliefs, customs, and values to provide the best care possible.

Health Equity

Attaining the highest level of health for all individuals.

Health Equality

The distribution of the same resources and opportunities to all individuals within a population.

Health Disparities

Health outcomes that may be greater or lesser among different socioeconomic populations.

Vulnerable populations

Groups of people at higher risk for poor outcomes due to barriers to social, economic, and environmental resources, including limitations from illness or disability.

The Joint Commission (TJC)

An impartial national organization founded in 1951 that accredits health care facilities based on safety performance, policy, procedures, practice, and outcomes.

National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG)

Established relevant safety practices initiated by TJC in 2002 that health care institutions should accomplish.

Near miss

A potential error, event, or circumstance that could have caused harm but was caught and avoided.

Patient safety event

An unexpected event or circumstance that occurred without injury to the patient.

Sentinel event

A critical, unexpected adverse event that caused severe physical or psychological harm to a patient, including death, dismemberment, permanent injury, or severe, temporary injury.

Root-Cause-Analysis (RCA)

A review process used to probe potential or actual errors to determine whether human error or systems failure led to the event and to establish corrective action plans.

Professionalism

The actions, behaviors, and attitudes of an individual that reflect the core values, ethical principles, and regulatory guidelines of the profession.

Professional Identity

A nurse’s sense of self, self-image, and self-concept as influenced by the values, beliefs, and attributes associated with the nursing discipline.

Accountability

A legal obligation and moral commitment to do the right thing, take ownership of decisions and actions, and be answerable for the consequences.

Responsibility

The obligation to perform tasks using sound professional judgment and being reliable and dependable in following through with commitments.

Transactional Leaders

Leaders who establish standards, highlight obligations, monitor behaviors, and use rewards or punishments to encourage compliance with rules.

Transformational Leaders

Leaders who establish a common mission and vision, relay trustworthiness, and encourage employees to heighten performance through inspiration and compassion.

Laissez-Faire Leaders

Hands-off leaders who encourage their team to work independently and provide the necessary resources while making minimal decisions.

Bureaucratic Leaders

"By-the-book" leaders who rely heavily on consistency, top-down decision-making, and precise adherence to procedures.

Situational Leaders

Leaders who transition or move from one leadership style to another depending on circumstances, tasks, and the nature of the group.

Chain of Command

An organizational hierarchy identifying lines of authority to ensure appropriate leaders are notified and involved in problem-solving.

Shared Governance

A shared-decision structure giving nurses control over their own practice based on the premise of access to resources, information, and a partnership in decisions.

Standards of Professional Practice

Specific established expectations for professional behavior in nursing to protect the nurse, client, and facility while holding nurses accountable for a code of conduct.

Native Nurse Practice Acts (NPAs)

Laws executed by state boards of nursing that regulate nursing within each state, identify licensure conditions, define titles, and determine scope of practice.

Acuity

The amount of nursing time required to provide nursing services for each client.

Scientific Method

A systematic research process whereby new knowledge is applied to nursing practice and results are evaluated through empirical data collection to limit bias.

Ethics

The process of making decisions, choosing right from wrong, and acting within one’s individual values and morals.

Autonomy

The freedom or independence for an individual to make their own decisions.

Beneficence

Actions guided by compassion and kindness.

Veracity

The ethical principle of telling the truth.

Fidelity

Keeping promises or commitments.

Justice

The principle that actions are fair and equitable.

Altruism

Acting for the sake of benefiting someone else.

Dignity

The implication that everyone has value and should be respected regardless of individual identification because all human beings are equal.

Integrity

The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.

Social Justice

The principle suggesting that regardless of societal status, every person has the right to quality health care; also known as distributive justice.

Malpractice

A situation where a nurse acts in a manner inconsistent with best-practice standards and causes harm to a client as a result.

Tort Law

Legal principles covering civil wrongs committed against an individual that result in injury or harm.

Informed Consent

Consent expressed in writing, requiring providers to educate clients about the risks, benefits, and alternatives to procedures.

Good Samaritan Laws

Laws protecting nurses from liability for harm when providing care outside of work, provided they are not willfully negligent and work within their licensure capacity.

Whistleblowing

An act when a person formally reports on illegal, wrongdoing, or unethical practice.

Motivational Interviewing

A form of therapeutic communication using the OARS mnemonic: open-ended questions, affirmations, reflective listening, and summarizing.

I-SBAR-R

A standardized communication tool for transferring care, standing for Introductions, Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation, and Readback.